Changes and improvements will be coming to Price City’s Main Street through the Utah Main Street Pilot Project. This project is an initiative, as well as partnership, between Brigham City and Price. There are also numerous state agencies and other organizations involved in the project.
The project was born as it was realized that some of Utah’s downtown areas likely will not recover from the economic impacts of COVID-19. The hope is to offset this with improvements and marketing campaigns aimed to bring customers back to the downtown areas. A return to “normal” main street activities, such as getting a haircut, going to the gym or eating at a restaurant, will be dependent on an informed and strategic plan of recovery.
The Utah Main Street Pilot Project has worked to assist the two cities in developing recovery plans as well as action steps. Main streets bring much to a city or town, such as a traditional center of community life, supporting positive community development, preserving culture and history, and more.
The public/private partnership team has been reported as providing a multi-faceted pilot program that will offer several benefits, including long-term business strategic planning, feasibility studies and business plans, funding assistance such as city beautification, multi-agency approaches and training, and technical assistance. Property, state and business owners will all benefit from Main Street revitalization.
However, the benefit continues to reach state government, district workers, police, schools and more. It is stated that the strategy will be organized around the four points of economic vitality, design, promotion and organization.
Partners for the Utah Main Street Pilot Project are Price, the Governor’s Office of Economic Development (GOED), the Utah Department of Heritage and Arts State Historic Preservation Office, Brigham City, the Utah Department of Transportation (UDOT), the DWS Community Development Office, BRAG, Preservation Utah, the Southeastern Utah Association of Local Governments and the Utah Office of Tourism.
Funding for the project will come from GOED, the Utah Office of Tourism, the Utah Department of Heritage and Arts, UDOT and a USDA-RBD grant.